Have you ever given the rain falling outside much thought? Sure, it is helping your dry lawn turn green again and it is lowering the temperature. But what about how many inches it has rained? Do you keep track of the rainfall in your area? You may not but there are countless scientists and researchers that do. And the most important instrument that they use is one many people employ just for personal use. It is a rain gauge. This special gauge is instrumental in determining how much rain has fallen so that weather specialists and researchers can help predict weather patterns. It is such a simple machine yet it yields so much information. The more you can know about this little gauge, the better you can understand the simplest things such as planting certain foliage and flowers for your area. In this article we will discuss the history of rain gauges as well as how they are used. You may want to buy one of your very own.
What is the history of rain gauges?
History’s oldest rain gauges were actually bowls used to measure the amount of rainfall for that particular area. It is interesting to note that these early forms of measurement were actually done so that land taxes could be formulated. Most of the gauges were kept near storehouses. The more rain that an area received; the more likely it was that the crops would be plentiful. This helped the leaders of that area figure out what the appropriate land tax should be. Historians believe that this first form of noting rainfall was first inscribed about 500 BC by the Ancient Greeks. More than a hundred years later officials from India were using the same type of system.
Who created the first rain gauge?
History is a bit fuzzy when it comes to accurately giving credit to who first used a rain gauge. Some believe that it was first used in the province of Cheugugi in Korea but there are others that state that Jang Yeong Sil developed it. If you stop and think about it, the Ancient Greeks were probably the first to use rain gauges but they may have been in very simplified forms. The first known records attribute this back to 500 BC. In 1662 the first tipping-bucket rain gauge was invented in Britain by Christopher Wren. This was a far more accurate gauge than those found previously.
Will a rain gauge measure snow as well as rain?
Technically it is possible for any type of rain gauge to measure the amount of snow but some are better for the job than most. The weighing precipitation gauge is by far the most versatile gauge to use because it goes on weight versus volume. Your standard cylinder gauge could easily become blocked and be unable to measure the precipitation accurately.
Can I make my own rain gauge?
There is no reason why you cannot make your own rain gauge. And it is a great project for a classroom or for your kids. The first thing you need to do is find something that will catch the rainfall and funnel it into a cylinder. A graduated cylinder is best because it makes reading the results far easier than if you had it funneled down to a glass jar. The graduated cylinder will also come marked in units of millimeters for a more accurate result. After you have attached a funnel to the cylinder you will need to then attach it to a pole in a clear, open area. You do not want any trees or buildings to be near. This will mean you get a more accurate reading. Once everything is attached and in place all you need now is to sit back and wait for it to rain.
